Mission: Play Truant fails! Disaster strikes!
by skyhawk.04
Summary: Shikadai and Boruto decided to skip class. Too bad, they got caught by our favourite Aburame-sensei. Will they escape their parents' wrath? One-shot.


**A/N: This fanfiction is a collaboration between me and my elder sister who does not have a fanfiction net account. She loves ShikaTema and adores Shikadai! So the clearly fluffy parts with the Nara family are completely her doing, sorry if you can't get used to the sudden change of style.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

"Shikadai! Stop staring at clouds, be on the lookout so Aburame-sensei can't find us!" Boruto chided his partner-in-crime with hushed tones.

"Like that would stop him from finding us. My dad says Aburame-sensei has these kikaichu that can track us wherever we go. There's no use hiding, how troublesome!" Shikadai answered, not bothered at all, casually choosing to stare at the clouds drifting in the sky through the partings of bushes.

Boruto and Shikadai were both hiding beneath a bush not far away from the Academy. Boruto was on his stomach, keeping an eye out for their teacher through a small hole in the shrub, while Shikadai was lying on his back with his hands behind his head, admiring the freedom of the fluffy white clouds floating lazily in the azure sky. Needless to say, it was another one of their attempts for freedom to stay away from the dreaded Academy classes, which they deemed as useless and dampens their prodigious ninja skills.

While Shikadai usually preferred to sleep through the classes (less troublesome!), Boruto had been going on and on about skipping classes beside his ear. He was eventually too fed up with the white noise that he decided to at least entertain the idea of skipping classes. After all, since his mother was still away on an important S-rank mission, and most likely won't be returning home until tomorrow, even if they did get caught by Aburame-sensei, he could at least persuade his father enough to keep quiet about it. That way, his mother will never find out, and what she didn't know won't get him into trouble right?

 _Meanwhile at the Hokage Office…_

"So here's the latest progress report from the pedagogy department of the Academy, and the newest recommendations letters for promotion to jounin…" Nara Shikamaru, chief advisor, explained as he tidied the papers in his hands. "I've looked through them and made some notes, so all you have to do is to approve those you see fit!"

Uzumaki Naruto, the Seventh Hokage, inwardly groaned at yet another mountain of paperwork. Nevertheless, he was glad to have Shikamaru help out with the never-ending amount of red-tape.

"Gee, thanks man! I will definitely look at those carefully, especially the jounin recommendations!" He said with pride. It was always heartening to be able to nurture and promote strong, worthy shinobi. His smile became wider as he flipped through the jounin recommendations.

 _Udon, recommended by Sarutobi Konohamaru; Moegi, recommended by Sarutobi Konohamaru; Sarutobi Mirai, recommended by Nara Shikamaru…_

Just then, a soft knock resounded through the office. Naruto and Shikamaru immediately looked up from the paperwork, and motioned for the visitor to enter. The door was pushed open and both men were pleasantly surprised to see who it was.

"Temari!" exclaimed Shikamaru, overjoyed at his wife's safe return.

Temari turned and flashed a bright smile at her husband. She was wearing the standard Konoha jounin uniform - the navy blue slacks and long-sleeved shirt, complete with a dark green flak jacket and blue shinobi sandals. Her projectile weapons pouch was bandaged tightly onto her right thigh, her signature giant folding fan strapped securely across her back. As usual, her hair was gathered in four ponytails, with short bangs hanging over her Konoha forehead protector.

"Hokage-sama, here's the mission report. The target was successfully incapacitated without major difficulties." She turned and addressed Naruto formally, handing over the S-rank mission report.

"Thank you, Temari-san. I was just very surprised that you completed the mission way ahead of schedule." Naruto replied as he took the mission report from her hands.

Temari shrugged nonchalantly. "It's nothing I can't handle. Besides," she flashed a playful smirk at Shikamaru. "Can't leave my two boys alone for too long, they always become lazy when I'm not around."

"Well you don't have to worry about Shikamaru slacking off, I'm keeping him busy everyday with paperwork!" Naruto joked, earning a slight grimace from Shikamaru.

"Then I'll best get going, Hokage-sama." Temari bowed slightly before turning to exit the Hokage Office. Shikamaru quickly called out to her before she left.

"Make sure you get some sleep, I'll take care of dinner tonight!" His wife might make dangerous S-rank missions look like a walk in the park, but Shikamaru knew she must be exhausted.

Temari's hand stopped on the doorknob. She looked back at her husband.

"About time you took the trouble." She remarked before closing the door behind her.

"Tch, anything for you, troublesome woman." He muttered to himself. Though most might be angered at Temari's rather insensitive comment, Shikamaru only saw the warm smile in her bright teal eyes.

Suddenly, a soft buzz could be heard and a small black dot came into Shikadai's view, destroying the image of white against blue. It was then did Shikadai realise it was one of kikaichu that was keeping him from enjoying the clouds.

"Oh no! Boruto! We have to get out of here! I saw one of Aburame-sensei's kikaichu!" Shikadai whispered urgently into Boruto's ear as the lone bug began to fly away.

Boruto swivelled his head to look around but could find nothing out of ordinary and saw no insects around. "Hey, Shikadai, I think your cloud watching must have tampered your brain so you imagined the kikaichu, I don't see any h-" Boruto got cut off abruptly as a small mass of black headed towards the shrub the two had taken cover in.

"What did I tell you? Run!" Shikadai shouted as he sprang from his position and out of the bush. Boruto didn't need any more hurrying as he rushed to stand up as well. Both of them ran away frantically from the kikaichu as fast as their legs could carry them.

However, before the boys could run any further, the kikaichu had circled around their ankles, causing them to trip and fall, unable to escape from its clutches. The rest of the insects then gathered to form a clone of their sensei.

"Well, what did I say about skipping classes? Boruto-kun? Shikadai-kun?" Shino questioned them in his usual monotonous voice, sunglasses flashing dangerously from the reflected light of the sun. Shikadai and Boruto cringed as the question was asked, painfully aware that this was not their first time running away from their 'Prison-of-Education'.

The two truants were brought back to the Academy and forced to stay back after school for detention as punishment.

"Why did you suggest skipping classes again? How troublesome to stay here for a much longer time… It's nearly nap time now!" Shikadai complained to Boruto as he swept the floor.

"Hey! You were the one who said class was boring in the first place, remember?" Boruto retorted as he rearranged the desks.

"Stop your bickering or I'll call your parents." Shino warned.

Both boys fell silent immediately. However, the tranquility of silence was always too good to last, as Boruto discreetly scooted nearer to Shikadai. "See that window over there, it's open, we can run out!" Boruto whispered, seemingly proud of his master plan. Shikadai nodded his agreement as they slowly inched their way closer to the window, while still acting like they were doing their chores diligently.

When the window was close enough, the boys lunged straight out of the window, as a last-ditch attempt in their bid for freedom. However, it was cut short when a wall of kikaichu surrounded them, blocking all paths of escape.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you cannot escape from me? Now I would have to call both your parents in." Shino stated in his still monotonous voice.

As Boruto and Shikadai were forced back into the classroom, both of them visibly gulped and had cold sweat running down their back at the prospect of meeting their parents about this incident.

"Good afternoon Hokage-sama. I am Aburame Shino and I apologise for interrupting, but I would like you, Shikamaru-san and your wives to come down to the Academy for a moment to talk about some issues regarding both of your sons. … Yes. … Thank you. "

Impending doom could be felt throughout the room as Boruto leaned in and whispered to Shikadai, "Did Aburame-sensei just did what I think he did?"

"Yes, he did. He called the Hokage's office where only the Hokage and his advisor works. In other words, your dad and my dad." Shikadai answered in equally hushed tones. None of them could think up a brilliant plan of escape now as the seconds ticked by until footsteps could be heard echoing down the corridor outside the classrooms.

An ominous series of knocks followed. Despite considering themselves outstanding shinobi with nerves of steel, Boruto and Shikadai couldn't stop themselves from a nervous gulp. Once the adults enter, all bets were off.

"Tch, why am I so worried all of a sudden?" Shikadai mused. "After all, I'm probably gonna watch Boruto getting chewed out by Hokage-sama and Auntie Hinata, while Dad will just shake his head and sigh because he thinks it's much too troublesome to scold me." Though he felt a slight twinge of guilt for his friend, he fought hard to suppress the cheeky grin sneaking up his lips.

"Come in." Shino said calmly. The door creaked open and a lone figure stepped in. As her back was turned towards the boys, they only managed to catch snippets of her conversation with Aburame-sensei.

"... They even tried to escape detention this time… I'm terribly sorry, Shino-san… you see, my husband and I are pretty occupied these days…"

"... No point apologising to me, Hinata-san… You might want to have a word with your son though…"

Shikadai heaved a sigh of relief. Only Auntie Hinata was here, and she will go straight to Boruto, leaving him with a few moments of respite.

"Boruto!" Hinata reprimanded sharply, her hands on her hips. "How could you be so disrespectful to Aburame-sensei! You know your father is busy taking care of the village, and I am always occupied with Himawari, so why is it so hard for you to spare a thought for us?"

Boruto huffed indignantly, crossing his arms and jutting out his chin. "Then why is it so hard for Dad to spare a thought about _me_? See Mom, even when I get into trouble, he hardly cares enough to…"

 _Knock. Knock._

"Dad?" Both boys exclaimed at the same time, as the Seventh Hokage and his chief advisor stepped in. Naruto's white Hokage cloak was swept up slightly by the wind, as he removed and placed his hat on the teacher's table. Whilst Naruto strode in with worry and purpose, Shikamaru adopted a far more laid-back stance, with his hands in his pockets and head bent slightly forward. In fact, he almost looked as if he didn't want to be here at all.

Boruto immediately rushed forward and prodded his father forcefully. Naruto was a little taken aback by his actions, and seemed at a loss as to what to do.

"You're not a Kage Bushin aren't you?!" Boruto shouted as he threw a forceful punch at Naruto. Naruto effortlessly grabbed his wrist and cushioned the attack.

"Of course not, Boruto. I came because Aburame-sensei said it was serious." Naruto explained carefully.

Hearing this, Boruto smiled sheepishly and ran a hand through his messy blond hair. His cheeks flushed a little with embarrassment as he recalled his brash actions.

"Heehee… sorry Dad, I thought... "

"It doesn't matter, what matters here is that both of you are not taking your shinobi training seriously." Naruto instantly went into full-on wise Hokage mode. "To be a good shinobi, you require both physical and mental training. Physical training helps you to practice and perfect your jutsu, while mental training prepares your mind and emotions for the challenges faced in the tough life that a shinobi leads."

"While it may seem that physical training and chakra manipulation take precedence, mental training is just as important, if not more important, for one to become a good shinobi. For both of you fledging shinobi, this training begins in school."

"But school is boring and useless and…" Boruto started to argue.

Naruto held up a hand to silence him. "As I was saying, you receive important mental training in school. When you attend lessons in physics and mathematics, it hones your logical skills, which will help you greatly in pinpointing the enemy's strengths. The process of taking a series of baby steps before coming to a logical conclusion is also trained here, which may just prolong your life on the battlefield. When you learn about the history of the shinobi world, you realise the mistakes that your forefathers had made, and from them on, strive to make the world a better place by learning from them and not repeating those same mistakes. When you are exposed to battle strategies and formations, you are introduced to important skills that will aid you greatly as a shinobi. This is also where you first learn about teamwork, the most essential life skill of a shinobi. The battle strategies and formations help a cell to protect one another, in the end, increasing the success rate of missions. "

"Lastly and most importantly, in school you are being taught what it means to a shinobi, and what are the values that shinobi hold close to their heart. Courage, discipline, determination, trust, comradeship... These values are being actively modeled by your sensei, and you can only consider yourself a true shinobi once you are certain that you have exemplified these characteristics."

"So," Naruto looked pointedly at both boys, who now hung their heads in shame. "Do you still think you are too cool for school?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Shikadai saw his father alternating glances between the floor and the door uncomfortably as he shuffled about the classroom. While Shikamaru feigned an air of nonchalance about him, Shikadai knew something was off.

"Damn… he only gets that look when he forgets to do something that Mom told him to!" Shikadai thought with alarm.

As calmly as possible, Shikadai approached his father and tugged on his long trench coat. Shikamaru stopped pacing to look at his son.

"Dad… can I ask if… is Mom still away on her S-rank mission?" He tried to make his voice as calm and steady as possible, lest his fear get the better of him.

Before Shikamaru could answer, Naruto, being the concerned Hokage, cut to the chase. "No, she just returned safely hours ago, Shikadai! What's wrong? Do you miss her?"

Shikadai's face instantly paled, as he racked his brains for a contingency plan to save his skin. After regaining his composure, he glared at his father, a mildly furious glint in his dark eyes, as if blaming Shikamaru for failing to keep the troublesome woman at bay.

Shikamaru merely scoffed and rolled his eyes at Shikadai's feeble attempt to imitate Temari's notorious death-glare. "As if it's my fault you chose to get into trouble when your mum came home early." He thought indignantly. Yet, deep inside, he knew there was impending doom for him as well, and shuddered slightly at the thought.

"What's wrong, Shikadai? Do you need me to get your mother?" Naruto asked kindly, blissfully unaware of Shikadai's worries. The boy was instantly snapped out of his reverie. After putting on his best pitiful look, he quickly latched onto the Hokage's arm and put his ingenious plan into action.

"Hokage-sama!" He sniffled with crocodile tears. "Please… you must send my mother off immediately to… to… Sunagakure! Yes, you must send her off to Sunagakure right now! Hurry!"

Naruto was shocked by the usually calm boy's sudden display of intense emotion. "Easy there, Shikadai, I know you are not feeling well but I'm afraid I can't send your mother off to Suna on such a short notice. It's pretty unreasonable to expect her to travel such long distances when she just completed an S-rank mission…"

"But you must!" Shikadai cried. "Because… because… Yes, because Uncle Gaara is getting married next week, and needs her help to plan the wedding! So she must go to Suna at once if not Uncle Gaara will be disappointed, and Uncle Kankurou will be angry, and then Suna-Konoha relations will turn sour, and then there will be inter-village conflicts, and then there will be war, and then the peace will be shattered…"

"Okay, okay I get that it's important Shikadai." Naruto scratched his head in confusion as he tried to calm the anxious boy down. "But I need to give her a short break at the very least, so the earliest I can send her off is tomorrow. By the way, it's rather strange now that you mentioned it, because the Kazekage hasn't sent me an invitation yet…"

"But you are the Hokage! And Uncle Gaara is the Kazekage! She must listen to both of you, so please please please send her off to Suna now…" Shikadai only latched on harder as he fought his case.

A strong gust of wind whipped through the classroom, effectively ending Shikadai's rambling. His eyes widened in fear and quickly scuttled away from Naruto, trying desperately to act as if nothing had happened. Even Shikamaru couldn't help but take a few involuntary steps away from the door, which rattled noisily on its hinges.

Peeking at Shikadai out of the corner of his eye, Boruto couldn't help but snicker at his friend's expense. He had always thought Inojin was exaggerating when he explained Shikadai's intense fear of Auntie Temari as the reason why Shikadai had to leave early whenever they met up to play video games, since he felt that she was a nice but strict lady from the multiple times he visited the Nara estate. Now, taking in his friend's petrified expression, Boruto came to the conclusion that Inojin was actually making a gross understatement.

"Even Uncle Shikamaru seems to be scared of her! And that Shikadai dare laugh at me just now for getting chewed out, looks like he's got what he deserved now!" Boruto chuckled.

Soft rustling of leaves entering the classroom could be heard as the wind died down. Boruto could literally see cold sweat pouring down from not only Shikadai's head, but Uncle Shikamaru's as well! "Why is Uncle Shikamaru so scared of Auntie Temari?" Boruto pondered. "Aren't they supposed to be caring and loving to each other like my mom and dad?" Before Boruto could delve into the subject further, an odd still seemingly stole over the classroom, as the mounting tension could be literally seen piling on top of the two male Naras. Both Shikamaru and Shikadai were fidgeting a lot, and eyed every wisp of wind with something close to petrification etched onto their faces, as if they were faced with Naruto's Fuuton: Rasenshuriken charging straight into them. The still solidified into ice, as a shadow could be seen nearing at the corridors.

The soft tap of sandals echoed throughout the classroom as the new visitor came into view. Temari stepped in, her dark purple yukata billowing in the wind. Her right wrist was planted squarely on the bright red sash secured around her waist, her slender fingers clenched tightly around a small folding fan.

She stopped a few steps in front of Shikadai, pausing only to direct her smoldering gaze on her son. Shikadai instantly ducked behind Boruto, as if afraid that her eyes will suddenly sprout Amaterasu and consume him in scorching flames.

Boruto smirked smugly and nudged his friend in the ribs. "C'mon, Shikadai! Go ahead! Just own up, apologise and get over it!" He encouraged with mock concern.

"But… but…" Shikadai mumbled, his teeth chattering slightly at his inevitable fate.

"Aww, is Shikadai such a sap he is afraid of his own mummy?" Boruto teased before sticking out his tongue at Shikadai.

"Stop it!" Shikadai hissed, trying to defend his honour. "Your mummy is so kind and gentle she is nothing compared to…"

"Shikadai, come here." Temari ordered, her voice level yet exuding a sense of authority. The ice of the previous stillness in the classroom shattered.

"Go on! Be a man!" Boruto whispered, before giving a light punch to his friend's shoulder.

Shikadai gulped and shuffled towards his mother, eyes directed towards the ground, away and wilting under her penetrating gaze. He always thought it ironic that he can stare at his eyes in the mirror everyday without fear, but could never bring himself to look into those same dark green orbs whenever he had done something wrong.

He stopped in front of Temari, bracing himself for the upcoming disaster. But the nervous tension was making him jittery, he always hated the calm before the storm.

"Shikadai, mind telling me what you told Hokage-sama just now?" Temari asked in a stern voice.

"Umm..umm…" Shikadai mumbled, shifting his weight from one foot to another. "I just apologised for my mistake… and asked him when you were coming home."

Temari let out an airy laugh, which made the hair at the back of Shikadai's neck stand on end. "This is really, really bad." He thought.

"Is that so?" She asked coyly. "Then just who do you wish for Hokage-sama to send to Suna?"

Knowing he had been busted, Shikadai chose to remain silent. It was always better this way.

"Shikadai," His head snapped up, for he knew if he didn't pay attention while she was lecturing (read: scolding) him, he will be end up in an even bigger mess. "First you skip class with Boruto behind my back, then you try to escape detention, and now you're manipulating Hokage-sama with some pathetic excuse to stop me from finding out?"

Shikadai gulped nervously, struggling to maintain his composure, not that he had much of it left anyway.

"I can't believe you! You have sunk so low to become a liar and a coward - in front of the Hokage, your sensei and your father no less - just to escape what was your due? And you dare call yourself a genius shinobi? The heir of the esteemed Nara clan? The only nephew of the Fifth Kazekage? Shame on you!" Temari admonished, before raising her fan and delivering a sound whack to her son's head. Shikadai winced in pain as he rubbed the sore spot.

Feeling pity for his son, Shikamaru stepped forward and tried to placate his furious wife. "Calm down, Temari, I'm sure Shikadai has learnt his lesson…"

Temari whipped around to face her husband, her glare becoming even more intense. Shikamaru gulped and took a few steps backward.

"And you," She brandished her fan at her husband. "Are you trying to condone his actions?"

"No, no, of course not." Shikamaru held up his hands in surrender. "I'm just saying that Shikadai needs more time… little boys like him can't sit still, I knew I couldn't at his age… Ouch!" He exclaimed, rubbing his head where the fan had landed.

"How many times have I told you to set a good example for Shikadai? At this rate the only things he seems to be learning from you are watching clouds and skipping classes!"

"Yeah, right. And at this rate the only things he seems to be learning from _you_ are glaring and arguing." Shikamaru thought bitterly to himself, but dared not say it out loud. To do so would be akin to digging his own grave and facing the full wrath of the woman scarier than his mother.

So he quickly settled for clearing his throat thoughtfully and nodding his head profusely. "Yes, yes, of course… I will… um… be a better role model for Shikadai in the future." One of his golden maxims, when it came to dealing with fierce, troublesome women, was to quickly admit his mistake and agree with her.

Temari's glare softened a little, then turned to ice once more. "One 'yes' is enough!" She scoffed, throwing him one last dangerous look. Shikamaru cringed at her tone, his wife had surely been spending way too much time with his mother. Despite all the melodrama surrounding mother-in-laws, the two women got along frighteningly well.

Shikamaru thanked the heavens as Temari once again turned to their son. "How many times have you skipped class?" She interrogated harshly.

"Uh… uh. This… is my first time?" Shikadai offered hesitantly, forcing himself to remain eye contact with his mother but failing miserably, ending up with his gaze flickering all over the place, ranging from the floor to his mother to his father.

"Hmm… If this is the first time, I am sure Aburame-sensei would be lenient and let you off. However, I see Hokage-sama, Hinata-san and your dad all standing here. Which means, you and Boruto have been skipping classes quite frequently, and I've been in the dark. Now, tell me the truth please, how many times have you skipped your classes?" Temari said in an oddly sweet voice, stressing every word of her last sentence, while her eyes up turned into downward-facing crescents.

"Uh… uh… let me see…" Shikadai found a sudden interest in his fingers and twiddled his thumbs, while his mind ran a mile a minute to find a way out of his current predicament. Unfortunately, he found none. Shikadai shot a desperate look at his father, hoping the older, more experienced Nara could come to his aid. After all, they were both stuck in the same boat. Much to his dismay, he found Shikamaru staring dreamily at the clouds outside the window, seemingly oblivious to the hurricane waging within.

"Well…" Temari pressed.

Boruto stood at the side, wondering if he should intensify his friend's torture. Before he could open his mouth to say anything, another voice spoke.

"Nine times, may I remind you, Shikadai-kun." Shino's unemotional voice rang through the classroom. At that very moment, Shikadai knew he was done for and tried to brace himself for what is to come. Shikamaru's heart almost stopped, he never thought Shino would betray him, weren't they all part of Konoha 11, who stuck for one another throughout their youth?

"Let me guess, you played truant whenever I happened to be on long missions or diplomatic visits to Suna." Temari stated flatly, crossing her arms across her chest and tapping her foot impatiently. Shikadai nodded slowly, putting on his best guilty look in hopes of getting off easy.

"And the reason I never found out was because you were in cahoots with…" She turned and narrowed her eyes at Shikamaru, a blinding murderous glint flashing through the teal orbs. Shikamaru swallowed nervously when he saw the glare only reserved for enemy shinobi. "Am I right, Nara?"

"Oh great, she only calls me 'Nara' when she is really, really pissed. What have I done to deserve this? Wait… I kept quiet about Shikadai's misdemeanors 'cos it was too troublesome to deal with… Now I seem to have landed myself in even more trouble… Haish, why haven't I predicted something like that will eventually happen?" Shikamaru sighed inwardly as he awaited his punishment. He hoped it would be swift.

Time seemed to come to a standstill, as the Nara couple continued their wordless face-off. Temari's glare was hard and unrelenting, while beads of sweat were dripping down Shikamaru's forehead. Boruto struggled to contain his giggles behind his hand, earning a sharp, disapproving look from Naruto. Hinata's hand went to her mouth as she beheld one of the infamous Nara marital spats, unsure whether or not to intervene. After all, she didn't want to offend any of her close friends. Meanwhile, Shino took in the tense situation rather calmly, as if he were simply watching a play or movie.

Shikamaru coughed again as he tried to salvage the already catastrophic situation. With his hands in his pockets, he thought for a moment and chose his words carefully. "You see, Temari, I actually wanted to tell you about Shikadai's misbehaviour… but the poor boy would jump on me and beg me not to divulge with his doleful puppy eyes… he looked so sad and pitiful it breaks my heart… so I didn't have the heart to… uh… put him through… uh… you know…" He trailed off, hoping his wife understood that he was referring to her wrath.

Temari's eyes narrowed even further as she scrutinised her husband like a hawk, seemingly unconvinced. Shikamaru took her silence as a cue to continue.

"Yeah… you may not believe it but he's actually morbidly terrified of the… uh… consequences… I told him after his third time that I was going to tell you… and then he shouted and almost cried and had such a great emotional outburst… so I decided that it was too trouble- Ouch! Is that fan made of iron or something?" Shikamaru groaned, mentally cursing himself for getting whacked twice in a day, an unprecedented rate.

"Troublesome? You kept me in the dark because it was too _troublesome_?" Temari's voice took on a dangerous lilt as she spat her husband's refrain back at him. "Shikadai needs to understand the value of discipline and take his shinobi training seriously, and _you_ should be the one helping him! How can you be so cavalier about your responsibility as a father, Nara? You are even more of a coward than our son, now I know where he learnt all those tricks from!"

Having run out of half-baked explanations, Shikamaru simply bowed his head and relented. Shikadai watched his father's expression with wide eyes, feeling a twinge of guilt for dragging him into this mess. "If only I had ignored Boruto this morning…" He mused with regret and dropped his gaze to his feet.

Studying her family's forlorn, guilty expressions, Temari let out a tired sigh, the day's events catching up on her. "You know I only get mad when you two have done something wrong, right?" She asked calmly, only to be greeted with silence from Shikamaru and Shikadai. "Why can't you two just give me a break?" She rubbed her temples with resignation, exhaustion evident in her low voice.

Lifting his head up slightly, Shikadai stole a glance at his mother. He was rather surprised to see that the murderous glint in her eyes had disappeared, replaced by a dull, worn-out look. Her face was covered by her hands, and her body slumped slightly forward, losing its previous erect stance. Even her hair seemed to be sticking up less than usual, the ponytails dangling loosely only to be swept up lightly by the occasional gust of wind.

Shikadai suddenly felt his stomach twist uncomfortably, as he took in the unexpected sight before him. He had never seen his mother look so dejected and jaded that she even gave up lecturing him. The unyielding woman could go on for hours on bad days; yet today she merely snapped at him, whacked him once on the head and gave up.

"Strange… Isn't giving up something that Dad is better at?" He thought to himself as he turned to look at his father. Shikamaru stood slumped against the wall, sighing deeply to himself with an even more resigned look than his wife. Shikadai took the chance to scoot closer to his father, tugging on his trench coat to get his attention.

"What do you want, Shikadai?" The older Nara asked wearily.

"I… uh… Dad, isn't Mom only supposed to come home tomorrow?" Shikadai asked as innocently as possible, hoping his father wouldn't chide him for his insensitivity.

Shikamaru sighed once again, then answered his son. "Well, technically yes but… well… you see… she um… she pushed herself really hard to be able to complete her S-rank mission before the deadline because she is worried that you will miss her."

"But I don't miss her! We're both better off without her bossing us around." Shikadai hissed softly to his father, crossing his arms with his brows furrowed and a hard glare in his large eyes. Yet, deep down, he would never admit to anyone, not even Shikamaru, that he felt a twinge of sadness everytime he bade farewell to his mother at the village gates before she set off on a long journey. The previous mission was no different.

Shikamaru merely scoffed at Shikadai's stubborn expression, which he found to be rather adorable and reminiscent of a young Temari. "Tch, how troublesome," He replied. "Then I guess the only logical reason you would believe is that she came home early because she knew you would become lazy and get into trouble."

Shikadai instantly deflated as he felt a sharp pang of guilt cut through his insides. He imagined his mother speeding through the thick forests surrounding Konohagakure, cutting back on rest and food breaks to reach home early. He then pictured her trudging back to the Nara estate tiredly after delivering her mission report to the Hokage, and crashing in the bedroom she shared with his father for a well-deserved nap, only to be rudely awakened by a frantic phone call from either Aburame-sensei or Auntie Hinata.

"No wonder she looks so drained, scolding Dad and I must have been tiring as well." Shikadai thought. He soon made up his mind about what to do, and silently approached his mother.

"Mom," Temari looked up the instant she heard her son's small voice. "I'm sorry for skipping classes… and… I… promise not to do it again." Shikadai quickly finished, and waited for her verdict with bated breath.

He was immensely relieved to see the corners of her lips curl into a small smile. "You better not eat your words, young man," Temari warned lightly. "Now, is there something you would like to say to Aburame-sensei and Hokage-sama as well?"

Shikadai nodded and walked towards Shino. "Sorry Aburame-sensei, I will take my shinobi training more seriously from now on." He apologised. Shino merely nodded at his statement with his usual calm expression. Shikadai then turned to Naruto, and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry Hokage-sama, I shouldn't have lied to you… Uncle Gaara isn't actually going to get married anytime soon."

Naruto broke into a wide smile. "It's okay Shikadai, I forgive you. But you should really tell your uncle to hurry up, if not the Suna Council might have no choice but to appoint you as the next Kazekage!"

Shikadai grimaced slightly, he surely didn't want to be Kazekage, it was too troublesome and he wasn't even a Suna shinobi to begin with. But he was glad for the Hokage's easy-going and humorous attitude.

"Boruto, you must not laugh at your comrades when they are scolded. Is that understood?" Naruto then turned to lecture Boruto. "When you become a full-fledged ninja, do you stand at the sides and laugh at your teammates when they are being reprimanded by your team leader? Comrades are meant to be there for one another, to support one another through thick and thin. To laugh at one's comrades is a blatant show of disrespect and lack of teamwork. This kind of behaviour is not to be accepted, especially in Konoha."

The classroom was silent as both boys were lectured by their own parents on their wrongdoings. They hung their heads in shame upon reflection and braced themselves for the verdict and harsh punishment to be meted out.

Finally, the silence was broken by Shino. "Well, thank you Hokage-sama and Temari-san. I do hope both of you have learnt your lessons, Boruto-kun and Shikadai-kun. As punishment, both of you will be staying back after school for a week to clean up the classroom and do a 100 lines everyday. Both of you will be writing 'A shinobi must hone his/her body to the utmost perfection, be it physically or mentally, to be able to serve the village with pride. All trainings must be taken seriously and tardiness will not be tolerated.' Both of you also have specific lines to do. Shikadai-kun, yours would be 'A shinobi must never lie to their superiors.' Boruto-kun, yours would be 'A shinobi must never make fun of their comrades.' For your lines, any outside help is not to be accepted and Kage Bunshins are strictly not allowed. I will send kikaichu to ensure that my instructions are being followed."

Boruto and Shikadai stifled a groan as they nodded their heads mutely, knowing that they deserved the punishment handed to them. Boruto mentally prepared himself for another round of chiding later at the dinner table, while Shikadai started thinking of a plan to protect his head, knowing full well that he would have to face his mother's wrath and iron fan the next day once she caught on with some rest.

 _One month later_

"Psst… Shikadai, school is sooo boring. What do you say to going outside and play?" Boruto whispered his sneaky plan to Shikadai as Shino lectured them on the history of the Five Great Shinobi Countries.

Shikadai looked appalled at the idea, then glared at Boruto before shaking his head in firm disapproval and continued to take down meticulous notes diligently.

"Aww… Shikadai, you're no fun, such a wet blanket. Hey! Inojin, what do you say to going out to play?" Boruto snapped his fingers at Inojin, who blinked in surprise.

"Go out to play? But isn't it lesson time now? We're supposed to listen to Aburame-sensei. That's what my dad says. " Inojin, who doesn't seem to know that the word 'truancy' exists, stuttered in confusion.

"Don't listen to Boruto, Inojin! He will only get you into trouble." Shikadai hissed a warning to his friend as he absent-mindedly nursed a spot on his head where his mother had hit him with her infamous iron fan.

Inojin looked lost as he shrugged off the comment and continued to stare at Aburame-sensei. Boruto shot daggers at Shikadai for foiling his plans and scanned the classroom, looking for his next partner-in-crime. "Hey! Chocho, do you want to go out and play now?" Boruto sprang on the Akimichi heiress.

"Are there chips there to eat?" Chocho asked haughtily, hardly sparing a look at Boruto, while munching on some crisps in a pack hidden underneath her desk.

"Can the group of you keep quiet? People are trying to listen here!" Sarada turned from her seat in the front row and snapped in irritation.

"Look who's angry! It's the Uchiha princess. Hey Sarada, do you want to go outside and play?" Boruto asked in sweet innocence.

"Well, well, well, just what are you planning here?" Shino seemed to spring out of nowhere, standing in front of them, with kikaichu buzzing dangerously around him. All heads snapped at once to look at Boruto, with the exception of Inojin who was staring blankly at everyone, seemingly unaware of the sudden turn of events.

"Umm… hehe… No… Nothing happened, Aburame-sensei." Boruto answered with an accompanying sheepish smile, one hand rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Just as Shino was about to issue a stern reprimand, the clamour of the school bell resounded through the classroom, ricocheting off the walls. Numerous cheers punctuated the air, as the excited Academy students dashed straight out of the door.

"Goodbye Aburame-sensei!" Boruto waved before disappearing in the blink of an eye.

 _End_


End file.
